When they ran the Florida Panthers, they signed a free agent from Miami University by the name of Dan Boyle who has merely turned out to be one of the best defencemen in the world.

In Anaheim, they inked four college players — Dustin Penner, Chris Kunitz, Curtis Glencross and Ryan Shannon — who had gone undrafted. Three of them are still prominent NHLers, while Shannon is off to Switzerland after playing 305 games in the league.

As the Senators’ hockey-decision makers, GM Bryan Murray and his nephew, assistant GM Tim Murray, have continued to tap the U.S. college system. Jesse Winchester, Bobby Butler and Stephane Da Costa all ignored offers from other NHL teams and signed in Ottawa.

Now the Murrays are trying to get highly-touted defenceman Justin Schultz of the University of Wisconsin Badgers to do the same.

“I will say this guy is going to be a tough sell,” Tim Murray conceded Tuesday. “We had a free reign for awhile, but other teams are finally starting to figure some things out.”

Whether it’s a star like Boyle, solid NHLers like Penner, Kunitz and Glencross, or depth players for the organization like Winchester, Butler and Da Costa, landing a free agent out of school is a plus. They don’t cost the team a draft pick or another asset in a trade. All it takes is time and money. Every team has both, but yet the Murrays and their scouts often outwork the others for the player.

What’s the secret? Tim Murray isn’t telling.

“We do what we do,” he said. “We have our process that we go through, we have our presentation that we make … and it’s our presentation.

“I just think actions speak louder than words. Look at our history with college free agents. We’ve got more than we’ve lost. If you compare that to other teams, I think that we’ve been very successful at convincing top college free agents to come with us.”

Schultz, an offensively-gifted individual who many believe is ready to crack an NHL team’s Top 4 on defence right now, became a free agent Monday. His agent, Wade Arnott, said he’ll begin listening to presentations from teams Wednesday.

It’s strongly believed that the West Kelowna, B.C., native wants to play in Canada, but not in Montreal or Winnipeg.

He’s best friends with Maple Leafs defenceman Jake Gardiner, but there are rumblings Toronto may trade that former Badger in a package for a goalie.

Either way, GM Brian Burke is expected to make a pitch for Schultz, like most of his counterparts across the league. But if he’s determined to stay north of the border, he’ll want to listen to what the Murrays have to say.

A 67’S REUNION

By picking up Cody Ceci in the first round of the NHL draft Friday, the Senators brought together three members of the 2009-10 Ottawa 67’s for the development camp at Sensplex this week. Corey Cowick (sixth round, 2009) and Shane Prince (second round, 2011) are also in the organization.

“To be honest I thought he was going to go earlier,” said Prince. “I watched the whole first round, and when it started to get around Ottawa’s pick, I was like, maybe he’s going to be available. He was, they picked him and I was real excited. I knew it wasn’t a good idea to text his phone, because it would be blowing up. So I contacted his sister, got on the phone with her and just said congratulations, and congratulated the family and stuff.

“It’s awesome to have him here in this organization.”

Prince and Ceci combined for 150 points on coach Chris Byrne’s team in 2011-12, and often they shared in each other’s glory.

“I’ve clicked with a couple of people over my hockey career and he’s definitely one of them,” said Prince. “When I played with the 67’s, me and him played together really well. We seemed to connect on a lot of goals.”

Both share the goal of playing on the Senators as soon as next season.

“It was definitely really fast, really intense,” Ceci said of his first on-ice experience as a pro Tuesday. “We’re all shooting for the same thing, so everyone in the back of their mind is just willing to work 110%. Even if it is a practice, everyone is just going their hardest to prove a point.”

TO BE A PRO

Matt Puempel had a taste of pro hockey this season, and he loved it. After losing much of his OHL season to injury, the Senators’ 2011 first-round pick ended up in Binghamton for nine games. He cherished the experience.

“Going to Binghamton was a big step, but I couldn’t have had a better time there,” said Puempel, who was limited to 30 games with the Peterborough Petes. “It was so much fun. Such a great group of guys, great coaching. Just to be in a pro atmosphere like that was a real eye=opener. I think it helped my development.”

Scoring a goal for the B-Sens helped his confidence, too.

“I wasn’t playing too much at the beginning, just being a young guy, but in the last few games I got a few more chances,” he said. “To score that first pro goal was pretty nice. I have the puck and everything, and I’ll always remember that.”

Puempel likely will spend next season in Peterborough, and he’s fine with that.

“Any kid coming to camp doesn’t come to get cut,” he said. “They want to make their impression and try to make the team they were trying out for. So that’s the mentality I’m going in with. Obviously there’s the development standpoint too, and another year back in junior would be good. Either way, whatever they want me to do is what I’m willing to do in order to be here full time one day and become an Ottawa Senator.”

Almost Done!

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